Experience of Using Wearable Devices for Dietary Management for Chinese Americans with Type 2 Diabetes (Preprint)
Year: 2025
Type: preprint
Abstract: BACKGROUND Chinese Americans face significant challenges in dietary management, which is crucial for glycemic control. Wearable sensors, such as the eButton and continuous glucose monitor (CGM), is a promising solution. OBJECTIVE We aimed to explore the experience of using the eButton and CGM for dietary management among Chinese Americans. METHODS Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes (T2D) (N=11) participated in a one-group prospective study. They wore an eButton on their chest to record their 10-day meals over two weeks and a CGM for the two weeks, and kept a diary to track food intake, medication, and physical activity. Individual interviews were conducted after two weeks to discuss their experience. We used ATLAS.ti software to thematically analyze the interviews. RESULTS Facilitators of using eButton included the device’s ease of use, ability to make participants more mindful, and influence on increased sense of control. Being more conscious of food intake enabled participants to eat smaller portions. Barriers included privacy concerns, difficulty positioning the camera for pictures, and the need for a record of pictures to track trends in glucose spikes. Facilitators of using CGM included its comfort and ease of use, its ability to increase mindfulness of meal choices, and motivating changes in eating behaviors. The most common barriers included the sensor falling off, getting trapped in clothes, and causing skin sensitivity. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that it is feasible for Chinese Americans with T2D to use eButton and CGM for dietary management. Future studies should apply these devices to a larger sample over a longer duration to better inform effective diabetes management strategies. CLINICALTRIAL NCT05335889
Authors: Michaela Greenlee, Bei Wu, Mingui Sun, Keer Chen, Wenyan Jia, Susan Zweig, Gail Melkus, Niyati Parekh, Yaguang Zheng
Language: English
Subfield: General Health Professions
Field: Health Professions
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4408611886